Canada - Part 2

Robert and I are at the back and Josh is in the second row

Our first full day in Edmonton and we found ourselves at West Edmonton Mall, one of the biggest malls in the world. Inside the mall was a rollercoaster, a wave pool with water slides, a seal show, mini golf, a hotel and the list shockingly continues! After walking around the mall for a while, Robert met up with us. We went for a late lunch/early dinner and then hit the theme park in the mall. Robert, Josh and I went on the roller coaster. . .safe to say that was the fastest, and worst roller coaster I have ever been on. I suppose it didn’t help when Robert began telling me about the people who had died on it a few years back as we were already strapped in and moving along the track! I was so relieved when it was over, a bit shaky but glad it was done! After walking around a bit more, I said goodbye to my dad and Josh, and Robert took me back to Sheila’s house for the night, where we stayed up again, chatting the night away.

The rollercoaster in the mall

From left: Robert, Jess, Jodie, Jess (me), Josh

We went to Robert’s company and got to put a few names to faces. We met Robert’s brothers, Scott and Grant as well as two other bubbly employees, Ryan and Andrew. I was also glad to go to the office as it meant I got to say hello to Sheila again. Afterwards, Robert took us to Joe's parents farm where we watched him and Joe bail. My dad had a good time as he was doing doughnuts again on the quadbike, my brother was also stoked that he got to have a go. We were given the grand tour of the farmhouse and wow . . . absolutely stunning! The house felt like a home, you instantly got that warm fuzzy feeling as you stepped through the door. We said our goodbyes and headed to White Avenue for lunch. We had lunch at a week old pub called the Tavern. . . you could tell they were going to do well as the food was fantastic! I went back to Robert’s place and made a milktart for him and Joe and also one for Sheila, just to say thank you for opening up their homes and for taking the time to show us around. Later on, we had drinks with Robert to end the day and he took me back to Sheila’s house, where no surprise I was up chatting away once again :). 

Beautiful house

Hay bail

We went to the mall again on Friday morning to watch the new Resident Evil in imax. I thought it was a total waste of 2 hours of my life but my brother seemed to enjoy it. My enjoyment came after when I bought a record as well as the record player to go with it! We tried out the record player in the shop and the girl who was helping us had never played a record before . . . glad to say I converted someone to want to listen to music where you really experience it. . . I don’t know how to describe it but there is something so much more pleasurable about listening to music when you are listening to it on vinyl. That hazy scratching in the background, the occasional skip. . . absolute bliss! That evening we went with Sheila to Jodie’s house for a delicious dinner (one of the greatest potato bakes I’ve ever had). After dinner, Robert, Joe, my brother, my dad and I hit White Avenue. We went to a country bar, where Joe somehow got me onto the mechanical bull! Haha man was that an experience! I held on for dear life as this thing jerked forward and backwards, speeding up as it went, until it got the satisfaction of throwing me off (which was pretty much as I just got on!). Joe went on after me and was a pro! She taught that mechanical bull a few lessons. . . . After that I headed to the dance floor, not to be seen again until we eventually left around 2 am. Whilst I was on the dance floor I was told that Robert and my brother attempted the mechanical bull, and apparently did quite well! We all woke up with bruises on our thighs the next morning though!

Josh

Joe the pro

The next day was unfortunately our last day in Edmonton. I packed my bag and said goodbye to Sheila, sad to leave. I had enjoyed our long evening chats and her great company. Thank you Sheila for opening up your home for me to stay in for a few days, we hope to see you out here on the boat sometime soon. Once our bags were packed we went to the airport to say goodbye to Robert and Jodie as they were flying to Kelowna for the weekend. We sat and watched them take off, as we were waiting; we met a lovely couple named Vern and Charlene. Vern and my dad got on swell, as they were both in the avionics trade. We made two new friends who I am sure we will cross paths again with one day. We drove that afternoon to Banff and finally found accommodation at Lake Louise after phoning 35 different hotels in Banff. We arrived late at night; so hit the sack as soon as we got in the room.

Lake Louise Inn

Moraine Lake

In the morning we went to Moraine Lake, which gave us the impression of glass as it reflected the environment around it. There was a group of people doing a polar dip. We all watched as they ran in their costumes into the freezing cold lake, and laughed as they ran out faster than they had gone in. We hired a kayak and paddled across the lake. The water was so calm; it was serenity at its purest. We all got great core workouts as we were trying so hard to keep our balance as none of us wanted to fall into the ice cold lake. Luckily, we all made it back to the dock dry. We then took a drive to Lake Louise, where we had lunch at a restaurant overlooking the lake. Now that was something spectacular to see! After lunch and the most amazing mushroom bruschetta I have ever tasted, I took a walk around Lake Louise. I strolled slowly around as I took in this breath taking lake. That night we stayed at a different lodge, called Deer Lodge. It was a great little place, which I highly recommend anyone to stay at if they ever find themselves in this part of the world.

Moraine Lake

Lake Louise, one viewpoint

Lake Louise from the opposite end

Natural Bridge

The roadtrip continues. . . next stop was Kelowna. On the drive there we stopped at a few places. One of these places was the natural bridge near Golden. It was a natural bridge that had been formed as water pushed its way through the rocks, wearing them down eventually. We also stopped at this small gas station for lunch, Eagle Pass. As we walked into the restaurant, we saw a huge hotel in the background. Just from driving past you would never of known that this was here. This place was called Ghost Town (not hard to see why). We got to Kelowna in the late afternoon. We had dinner and relaxed a bit before closing our eyes for the night.

Skipping stones

Ghost Town

The next morning was the last morning of the roadtrip. We did the short drive from Kelowna to Vancouver and caught the ferry just in time back to Vancouver Island. We were at Robert’s condo, ready for bed, shortly before nightfall.

Wednesday, we fetched Robert from the airport and went to a little spot that most people would drive past without thinking twice, and had the greatest fish and chips! Robert also got me to try a London Fog, which is basically a sweet early grey tea latte. It was actually really good! It was early evening by the time we got back to Robert’s condo, so after drinks we went back to the same lodge for dinner that we had gone to last time with Robert. We all laughed as we were led to the exact same table we had previously sat at! After dinner, with a second burst of energy, we went swimming. Luckily the pool in the complex is heated so I didn’t freeze my butt off!

Thursday was my second and last run with Robert (shocking, yes I know, if you read how much we ran sailing at the beginning of the year!). On this run, instead of just dipping our feet in the freezing cold water, we swam in it! I lost feeling in my toes and my fingers, it was so cold! Luckily, the running returned some feeling back to my body as the sun hadn’t appeared yet over the tall, beautiful trees. Once back at the condo, it was quick packing, and off to the ferry. We took the ferry to Horseshoe bay, where Robert drove us to the airport. We said goodbye to our dear friend in the hopes of seeing him again upon the water soon. The time had come for us to leave Canada. It was a sad moment as Canada was such a beautiful place, and the three short weeks we had flew by far too quickly. Thank you again to all the people who contributed to this being such a memorable trip. So to Al and Ernie, sorry we missed seeing you this time, but I hope our paths will cross once again somewhere in this beautiful world; and to Robert, Jodie, Sheila, Vern and Charlene. . .thanks for the memories :).